Paul Greviskes: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: BataviaWebsite:www.greviskes.com Office sought: Aurora Township Supervisor (4-year Term)Age: 62Family:Married 34 years, two childrenOccupation: Candidate did not respond.Education: Southern Illinois University, B.S., John Marshall Law School, J. D.Civic involvement: Volunteer; Two Rivers Head Start, 22 years to current; Fox Valley Park District, about 2 years to current; Farmland Preservation Commission; Marmion Academy Alumni Board; Citizen's for Neighborhood Improvement Humanitarian Award; Youth Basketball and Track Coach; St. Rita Education Commission; St. Rita Eucharistic Minister; Lawyer in the LobbyElected offices held: County Board Member and Kane County Forest Preserve Commission from 1990 to 2008. Retired. Member of the executive committee of both the County board and Forest preserve. Chairman of the Public Safety and Administration Committees. Member Legal Affairs Committee. Member Grand Victoria Riverboat Committee. Member Development Committee. Member and Deputy Chairman of Liquor Control Commission. Member of Land Acquisition Committee of the Kane County Forest Preserve. Member of Land Use Committee of the Kane County Forest Preserve.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain:Never arrested nor convicted of a crime. Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 To restore integrity, professionalism and compassion to the Aurora Township board. The current supervisor has engaged in questionable conduct by giving herself salary advances from Township funds without authorization from anyone and was subsequently censured by the board of trustees. The current supervisor has entangled the township in claims of wrongful employment termination. The current supervisor rejected a request for emergency assistance to a family in need due to a fire at their apartment because of a technical rule violation. The other candidate was a trustee at the time. Key Issue 2 The current situation is that homeowners' property values are declining while their taxes are going up. I will maintain the tax levy at its current level and reduce it if possible. I will also hold property tax reduction seminars to educate people about the methodology of determining the assessed value placed on their homes and protest their taxes in order to insure that they are being taxed fairly. Key Issue 3 Many people in the Township are unemployed or underemployed. I will create an area on the Aurora Township website for an employment clearing house where people can post their resumes' so that potential employers can search for employees with skills to match job openings. I will also partner with other entities to create an internship program similar to and hopefully in conjunction with the one being proposed for Aurora by Harvard University and the Dunham Fund called #8220;Pathways to Prosperity#8221;. College graduates and their potential employers frequently use low pay or no pay internships for the graduates to gain experience and the employers to evaluate them. Clearly this model can be used for high school and or community college graduates as well but someone needs to take charge and get it done. Questions Answers Name the three most important goals or objectives this board should tackle in the coming term. Prioritize them, and briefly discuss why you believe each to be critical, and how the board should go about addressing them.Candidate did not respond.In the 21st Century, with municipalities gobbling up vacant land, why are townships needed? Should they be serving a new role? If so, what?The statute creating township government gives townships broad authority in areas such as transportation, social services for the aged and poor, development and retention of business, recreation and other areas. Those needs still exist in an urban environment and township government therefore has a role to play. I would like to change the focus of our youth programming from the recreational/athletic arena to providing exciting and forward looking educational opportunities like science, technology, engineering and math programming. I would look to create robotics teams or other similar STEM programs. Many hi-tech companies offer grants in this area as well as the federal government. Education opens doors. The world is changing and technology will drive the future and everyone deserves a shot at that future. The proposals that I have made will provide real help to people at no cost to the taxpayers. What should be the primary responsibility of township government?Candidate did not respond.In these hard economic times, can you identify some township expenses/programs that could be trimmed or eliminated to reduce the tax burden?These are hard economic times. There are three things that I would do to address the current economic climate. Firstly, I would hold the levy constant. Secondly, I would make sure that people are only paying what they should pay in real estate taxes. Thirdly, I would look at partnering with other governmental and nongovernmental agencies to avoid duplication of services so as to gain economy of scale, particularly in such areas as athletic and lunch programs. Fourthly, I would also employ zero based budgeting which would require each area of the Township to justify its entire budget annually.What specific background or experience do you bring that makes you the best qualified candidate to serve as an elected official in the township?I bring an expansive wealth of governmental and nongovernmental expertise to the Township because of my service in elective office and on the board of other agencies. I know how other units of government work and operate. I know where we can gain efficiencies and how to gain cooperation with other units of government and agencies. My thirty seven years of legal practice has prepared me for the kind of decision making that is necessary for the position of Supervisor. I have chaired a number of committees, commissions and boards. I have the leadership skills necessary to head up Aurora Township government. Both of my opponents have been part of the current Township government are part of the problem and not the solution.